Magazine on Icelandic design and architecture

All posts filed under: Graphic Design

TypoCraftHelsinki is a project from Finland that operates as a kind of mobile exhibition, wherein Finnish designers visit different countries and collaborate with local talent, in this case Iceland. The project combines typography, design, art and craftsmanship, and was first presented to the public in 2015. This year’s exhibition will feature eight designers or studios – Finnish and Icelandic – and will be viewable at the Hafnarhús Reykjavik Art Museum. The designers’ shared theme this time was expedition, with typography in its various forms serving as the project’s touchstone. Magnús Hreggviðsson is the foreman of the Association of Icelandic Illustrators and one of the exhibition’s chief organizers, not to mention one of its featured artists; he appears on behalf of Børk Studio. Among his duties was the selection of participating Icelandic designers. “My job is to be a liaison of sorts for the Icelandic designers,” he explains. “Any kind of designer can be part of the project, but we wanted to focus on graphic designers, since our goal is to best represent the Illustrators’ Association. …

With tourism growing at an acute rate, Icelandic agencies and landowners are now working to minimize accidents and preventable risks by building up the national travel infrastructure needed to support the large influx of incoming travellers. Hætta / Athugið contributes valuably to this effort with customizable icons and a thoughtful system that will soon be tested at popular tourist attractions in collaboration with the Environmental Agency of Iceland. Hætta / Athugið by Ívar Björnsson is a customizable signage system that uses humour and charismatic graphic language to address the serious issue of tourist safety in Iceland. There is a current lack of consistent and effective signage across the country and tourists often may not realize the bodily risks encountered while traveling the countryside—whether intense winds, unpredictable beaches, or glaciers. How would you describe your project? The increase of accidents in Iceland following the tourist boom is a national concern. Current Icelandic warning and danger signs are not sufficiently effective or systematized. My objectives were to create a signage system that succeeds in grabbing attention of …

While most people think of typeface design as seriously nerdy, it is impossible to ignore the fact that fonts play a role in most aspects of daily life. Author: Arnar Fells / Photograper Axel Sigurðsson The graphic designer Guðmundur Úlfarsson is one of the two owners of Or Type, the only specialist typeface design studio (or type foundry) in Iceland. Guðmundur recently gained attention after both the New York Times Magazine and the Sundance Film Festival bought typefaces designed by him. So who is this young type designer and what inspires his work? To find out, HA visited Guðmundur’s office in the old gas station by Hlemmur… …“Or Type receives a lot of enquiries, despite the fact that our target market is small. In fact, we have too many typefaces underway. The only thing holding us back is time, because it takes so long to complete one typeface, and I’m not even talking now about creating different variations of it,” says Guðmundur, who, today, is working on five different typefaces. He brings out a photocopy …

Few individuals have had such a lasting influence on Icelandic Graphic Design legacy as Gísli B. Björnsson. With a career spanning five decades, Gísli spearheaded the introduction of modernism to Icelandic advertising and graphic design. We asked Gísli to list a few selected words of wisdom from his many years of experience; valuable lessons for other designers to take into consideration in the world of visual communication. Author: Arnar Ingi Viðarsson / Photos: Arnar Fells Collaboration, not competition Our role as designers is not only confined to responding to briefs that come our way but also to show initiative. A phone call or a surprise visit to a client can create new relationships or new projects and is a thing of great worth. Everything in moderation There are thousands of typefaces and each designer has his or her favourite. A small collection of good typefaces has been sufficient for me; I could probably make do with four fonts with all their variations. Knowing how to say no Is more important than knowing Latin. Clients sometimes have …